Wilhelm Westerop was a German painter born in 1872 in Potsdam near Berlin, where he has always lived and worked. He devoted himself to painting animals, mainly horses and dogs in a realistic style. He painted horses for the plough, for a carriage or mallejan, but his specialty was the portrait of horses and dogs that he made on behalf of their proud owners. The riding or racing horses stand proudly posing in the stable or outside, with their names clearly mentioned. Sometimes we see them pictured with their rider on a ride in nature. The dogs are painted indoors or are depicted lying down next to a horse. Westerop was active until the 50s of the 19th century and always continued to work in a naturalistic style that did justice to the animal he depicted.